Japan Orders Sony, Dell To Investigate Battery Problems

Japan's trade ministry ordered Sony Corp. and Dell Inc. to investigate trouble involving Sony-manufactured laptop batteries, saying they overheated and caught fire in at least two instances in the country.

Batteries manufactured by the Japanese company for Dell laptops overheated and caught fire in two separate instances in October and June, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a statement.

The ministry instructed the two companies to investigate the safety of Dell models Latitude, Inspiron and Precision and report on their findings by the end of August, the ministry said.

Earlier this month, problems with battery cells supplied by Sony forced Dell to recall an unprecedented 4.1 million laptop batteries in the United States.